


Of Houses And Homes

by KitMiller



Series: Martin & Luke [2]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Background Femslash, Betaed, Domestic, Domestic Fluff, Fluff, M/M, Urban Fantasy, Vampires, Work
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-06
Updated: 2020-06-06
Packaged: 2021-03-04 07:27:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,409
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24569998
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KitMiller/pseuds/KitMiller
Summary: “Honey, I’m home!” Luke called, stepping out of his shoes.“You’re such a cliché!” Martin called back from the living room.Luke at WorkversusLuke at Home.
Relationships: Martin Nicholls/Luke Gardner, Original Female Character/Original Female Character, Original Male Character/Original Male Character
Series: Martin & Luke [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1761223
Comments: 1
Kudos: 7





	Of Houses And Homes

**Author's Note:**

> While this series can be read in any order, I advise you to read the first instalment to make more sense of this one.

Luke checked that his suit was free of cat hair, his tie on straight, and his shoes shiny. Satisfied, he leaned against the bonnet of his car and watched the couple’s van roll up the driveway. The gravel crunched under its tyres.

Ada got out first, jogging around the front to help her wife. Sophie laughed but allowed Ada to fawn over her. Sophie’s baby bump was accentuated by her floral summer dress. 

Luke straightened and shook first Sophie’s, then Ada’s hand. “Mrs and Mrs Keating, such a pleasure to see you again.”

“And you, Mr Gardner.” Sophie pushed her sunglasses into her honey-coloured hair, looking up at the house. Luke instinctively turned and did the same. “It’s quite big, isn’t it,” Sophie remarked carefully. 

“But well within your budget, I assure you,” Luke replied.

Ada sucked in a cheek sceptically, shoving her hands into the back pockets of her cut-off jeans. Luke didn’t know any details, but apparently, they had not had the best experiences with previous estate agents. Ada let out a tense breath. “Well, you haven’t let us down yet.”

Sophie nudged her. “Don’t be an ass, babe.”

“Sorry,” Ada muttered, vaguely in Luke’s direction.

“That’s all right,” Luke said. He liked Ada’s blunt honesty. It made his job easier. “I’ll do my best to not let you down in the future.” He gestured with the folder in his hand. “Shall we go in? Or would you like to see the garden first?”

The two women exchanged glances. “Let’s see the house first,” Sophie said.

Luke nodded and led the way, reciting information and showing them around. He kept an eye on them, especially Ada. This was the third house he’d showed them, and if the impressions he’d got of them during their previous meetings were correct, the one they’d like best. 

Ada had clearly done her research. She kept asking pointed questions about hidden costs and renovations that might become necessary in the future. But Luke had prepared well, too. And as he answered all her questions honestly and as thoroughly as he could, she became more relaxed and lenient.

“Well, and this,” pushing open the door to one of the upstairs bedrooms, “would make the perfect nursery.”

“Oh, wow!” Ada turned on the spot. “It’s lovely!” The room was at the corner of the house, allowing for large windows on two walls, offering a spectacular view of the garden and letting in loads of sunlight. It would absolutely suck for Martin, Luke thought.

Luke gestured to one window, in front of which stood a large plum tree. “This blocks the light a little. You could get it cut down, of course.” Luke moved towards it as he spoke, Ada and Sophie following. “It would cost quite a bit, though, and I personally think it’s quite beautiful — oh!” He put a finger to his lips and carefully opened the window. “Look!”

Right in front of the window, there was a bird’s nest, with half a dozen baby birds tucked inside. Sophie gasped in delight, and Ada broke out in a surprised smile. Luke grinned to himself. He had spotted the nest on his earlier round of the house, of course, but he just couldn’t resist a little theatrical flair. 

He started to say something, but just at that moment, the mother bird, a blackbird, landed on the side of the nest, feeding the now chirping chicks. Sophie bit her lips but couldn’t muffle her squeals completely. Ada, who had taken her hand, gave it a squeeze.

Luke waited until the mother flew away again before he closed the window. “Well, I sincerely hope you  _ won’t  _ cut it down now,” he said with a smile.

“Are you kidding?” Ada laughed. “That thing stays!”

“This is an omen,” Sophie added with a serene smile. Her hand rested on her round belly. “I can’t think of a better place to raise our child.”

“Well, let’s not rush it,” Ada replied. If she had not said it, Luke would have done.

He took them on a brief tour of the garden, and then they gathered back by the cars. “If you may allow me to share my personal opinion,” Luke said, “I truly believe that this house is perfect for you.”

“So do I,” Sophie said dreamily. 

“I’m glad to hear that,” Luke said with a smile. “I do have two more houses I think you’d like, though, if you want some more options.” He took out two files and handed them to Ada. “Just contact me whenever you’ve decided — whether that’s to see another house or if you want to take one of the ones I’ve shown you so far. Do you still have my card?”

“ ’course,” Ada replied, carefully folding the files. “Thank you, Mr Gardner. Really.”

They shook hands. “Not at all,” Luke replied. “Believe me when I say it’s my pleasure.”

* * *

Twenty minutes later, the front door fell shut behind Luke and he sighed, happy to be home after a long day at work. “Honey, I’m home!” he called, stepping out of his shoes.

“You’re such a cliché!” Martin called back from the living room. 

Grinning, Luke went to him. Martin was on the sofa. He had a book in his hand and the cat on his stomach. Luke leaned over to give him a kiss. “Can I put the lasagna in the oven now or are you going for a run before dinner?” Martin asked when Luke straightened.

“I went running this morning, you were still asleep.”

“All right.” Martin pushed at the cat, who immediately jumped on the armrest and started to frenetically wash himself. 

While Martin clattered about in the kitchen, Luke headed upstairs to change. In the bedroom, he pushed the black-out curtains aside to open the window for a bit. He took off his suit and carefully hung it up, inspecting it for any stains or tears. Not finding any, he then pulled on a pair of sweatpants that had more darns and patches than unharmed fabric, and a t-shirt that used to have a print of a skull but now just had a slightly-lighter oval on the front. He left the black-out curtains open, as the window faced east and wasn’t going to let in any sunlight before the next morning. He went into the bathroom, where he took out his contact lenses and put on his glasses, a clunky black thing with a scratch on the left lens and side pieces he’d had to tape back on multiple times.

Ready for relaxing, Luke went back downstairs. Even though all the black-out curtains on the ground floor were drawn and pinned in place, there was no real difference in brightness to the first floor. The whole house was fitted with ultra-bright lamps that mimicked sunlight and were fully dimmable. Getting them installed had cost nearly as much as the house itself but they were more than worth it.

Martin had migrated back to the sofa, a kitchen timer softly ticking along on the coffee table. He scooted to let Luke lie down next to him. There were a few minutes of shoving and laughing and Luke nearly falling off, but they finally managed to ensconce themselves. 

“Hey, what happened to your hand?” asked Luke when Martin wrapped his thin arms around him. There was a band-aid on his wrist. 

“Hm? oh, that. Just a small sun blister.”

“How’d that happen?”

Martin shrugged. “I went to see Jenny at the old folks’ home today and there must have been a momentary gap between the cuff and the glove. I didn’t even notice until I took the gloves off.”

Luke didn’t say anything for a moment.

Martin continued before he could. “You can stop worrying now.”

“You’ve got to be more careful, honey,” Luke muttered, slightly ticked off that Martin made light of it. It could easily have been much worse than just a small blister. “How’s Jenny?” he asked into the ballooning silence.

“Fine. Mostly. I didn’t stay long, she seemed rather tired.” Martin made a vague movement with his hand. “She said to give you her love.”

“Thanks.”

“How were your clients, then?”

“I think they’re sold.” Luke yawned. “I’m happy for them, it’s a lovely house.”

Martin grinned at him, his fangs showing. “But is it as lovely as  _ this _ house?”

“You’re awful,” Luke laughed and shoved at his bony shoulder. Then he kissed him. “Not even close.”

**Author's Note:**

> As always, a thousand thank-yous to Beth for lending me a patient ear and much-needed beta-reading.
> 
> Also it took me ages to decide on a job for Luke. It was a very, very close tie between lawyer and estate agent.


End file.
